Steve is from Maryland and attended the University
of Maryland. After college,
he spent a couple of years performing in local dinner theatre before a
friend, Wayne Duvall, told him they were searching for a Hans Christian
Andersen in New York. In
1981 after booking the gig, Steve began the typical actorís journey.
Regional theatre stops in Boston at the Charles Playhouse,
Baltimoreís Center stage, and the Fordís Theatre in Washington, DC.
During a run of The Robber Bridegroom at the West End in
Virginia, once again Wayne Duvall called to let him know of an audition
for a revival of The Three Musketeers on Broadway. After driving all night and waiting on an open call, Steve had
five call-backs in six months, finally getting an understudy to Brent
Spinerís "Arimus." The show
closed after one week. Back to the road.

More stops
followed in DCís Fordís Theatre in Hot Mikado, a Jesus
Christ Superstar at Candlewood, and in 1987, a national tour of A
Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum starring Mickey Rooney
understudying "Miles Gloriosus." As
luck would have it, Steve went on during the opening night performance
in Los Angeles. His reviews
garnered an agent or two and he began to focus on the small and large
screen. In 1989, Steve
signed on to Ken Hillís original Phantom of the Opera for almost
three years. In 1992, while
performing Chess at the Paper
Mill Playhouse, he was chosen as
"Lancelot" opposite Robert Gouletís "Arthur" in the national tour of
Camelot. After two
years of Camelot, Steve was once again making stops in St.
Louisís Repís Esmeralda, Westburyís Annie Get Your Gun
with Andrea McArdle, and Atlantaís South Pacific with Mr.
Goulet. In 1995, Steve performed the role of "Fred" and the
"Headless Ghost"
in Alan Menkenís A Christmas Carol at the Madison Square Garden.

Originally, Steve was seen for Disneyís
Beauty
and the Beast in 1993 while on tour with Camelot. Finally, in late 1995, he was asked to standby for both
"the Beast"
and "Gaston." In 1997, he
took over "the Beast" in the Toronto company and was then asked to come
back to Broadway to become "Gaston."
And in 1999, Steve was chosen to play "the Beast" yet again at the
Lunt-Fontanne in the re-opening of the production. On July 29, 2007, Steve completed an 8 year run as "the Beast" in Beauty and the
Beast when the long-running show played its final Broadway
performance. He has the distinction of being the actor with the
longest run on Broadway in the role of the Beast.

Steve takes a swing for Beauty and the Beast.

Steve plays ball in the Broadway League

Steve has had numerous opportunities to originate roles in
new works. He originated the title role in the new Off-Broadway
musical, Johnny Guitar, which played at
the Century Center Theatre in the spring of 2004. He can be heard
on the original cast recording of the production. Later that year,
Steve starred as Doc Holliday in the original recording of the new
musical, Sundown,
based on the Legend of Doc Holliday. Sundown was named one of the
top 10 best theatrical albums of 2004 by Jonathan Frank of Talkin'
Broadway. In May of 2006, Steve starred in the role of Maximus in a workshop of
Gladiator, a new
musical based on the Dreamworks/Universal film. In autumn of 2007, Steve originated the role of The
Creature in the Off-Broadway musical, Frankenstein, based on Mary
Shelley's book by the same name. The world premiere was held at
the 37 Arts Theatre. He can also be heard on the cast recording of
that production. From one icon to another, Steve was tapped to
originate the role of Charles Ingalls (Pa) opposite Melissa Gilbert as
Caroline Ingalls (Ma) in The Little House on the Prairie, which premiered at the
Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis. He continued in the role during
the 10 month national tour in 2009-2010.

Most recently, Steve took on Whoville as the Grinch in
Dr. Seuss'
How the Grinch Stole Christmas at the Old Globe Theatre in San
Diego.

On television he has been seen in Ed, Third Watch, Law and Order, Sunset Beat, Police Story, Another World, One Life to
Live, Guiding Light, and Rapmaster Ronnie for HBO.